Limbaugh confirmed a$$hole

Two news stories today caught my attention as I wasted the hours between class and teaching. The first you can access by clicking the title of this blog (at least for a few weeks).
Limbaugh confirmed as asshole
Monday during his all-too-popular radio show, Rush Limbaugh said the following of actor and activist Michael J Fox: "He is exaggerating the effects of the disease," Limbaugh told listeners.

He's moving all around and shaking and it's purely an act. . . . This is really shameless of Michael J. Fox. Either he didn't take his medication or he's acting.

This is the end of Disability Education Awareness Month, and Limbaugh obviously is not aware of the reality of chronic ilness. Nor is the editor of our lovely Exponent who stated in his editorial last week that Purdue is doing a good job paying attention to the architectural difficulties of our campus and is thus "aware." But making changes to architecture is only the beginning of disability awareness--just because access is "granted" to those of us with mobility issues, doesn't mean that the access is good or convenient access. It means that we have met the minimum criteria to be considered accessible. It certainly doesn't mean that this is a friendly environment for students with disabilities--instead, it means the administration can wipe its hands clean of the issue and pat itself on the back. The *real* problems that come with a disability are never addressed.
Limbaugh's comments make sense, given that most people do not understand the daily reality of those living with "impairments" (many quotation marks throughout). No, Fox doesn't shake continually, but that doesn't mean that he is faking during those times he does have to abandon control for awhile. Chronic illness is not constant, it is not eternal, it is not homogenous minute to minute. It is always shifting with the multiple constraints of each given situation.
I don't have to admonish Limbaugh; his comments are just plain insensitive, not just to Fox, but to all of us with neurological problems.